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<H1>Salary plan for San Diego State president stirs furor</H1>
<H2>The compensation of $400,000 draws fire from critics, who cite deep cuts and
rising tuition in the Cal State system. But a study found CSU campus presidents
are underpaid compared to their peers.</H2>
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<P class=small sizcache="8" sizset="18">If the plan is approved Tuesday by
the Cal State Board of Trustees, San Diego State President Elliot Hirshman
would receive $100,000 more than his predecessor. <SPAN class=credit
sizcache="8" sizset="19">(<SPAN class=photographer>Earnie Grafton / San
Diego Union
Tribune</SPAN>)</P></SPAN></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></DIV></DIV><SPAN
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<DIV class=byline sizcache="8" sizset="21"><SPAN class=byline>By Carla Rivera,
Los Angeles Times</SPAN></DIV>
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<P class=date sizcache="8" sizset="22"><SPAN class=dateString>July 9,
2011</SPAN></P>
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<DIV id=story-body-text sizcache="8" sizset="23">California State University is
proposing to pay the new president of its San Diego campus $100,000 more
annually than his predecessor, a move that is raising hackles as the university
grapples with another round of student tuition hikes amid deep state funding
cuts.<BR><BR>If the plan is approved Tuesday by the Board of Trustees, San Diego
State President Elliot Hirshman would receive annual compensation of $400,000 —
$350,000 from the state and an annual supplement of $50,000 from the campus'
nonprofit foundation.<BR><BR>
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<DIV class=googleAd>The annual salary of former President Stephen L. Weber was
$299,435, according to university records. Hirshman's proposed salary is only a
little shy of that of Cal State Chancellor Charles B. Reed, who receives
$421,500 in salary, as well as $30,000 toward his retirement from the Cal State
University Foundation.<BR><BR>Some lawmakers, students and faculty were
incredulous at the salary recommendation and its timing, coming after the
Legislature and governor approved a spending plan last week that cuts $650
million from Cal State, with additional reductions possible.<BR><BR>On the same
agenda Tuesday, the university's governing board will consider a recommendation
to increase annual tuition by 12% — or an additional $294 a semester for fall
2011. That would be on top of a previously approved increase of 10%. Over the
last decade tuition has tripled, to $4,884 a year for undergraduates in the
university system.<BR><BR>"It's outrageous," said Assemblyman Anthony Portantino
(D-La Cañada Flintridge), who sits on the Assembly's higher education committee.
"At a time then they are raising student fees, it's not acceptable. For those of
us who fight for every nickel to help our kids, they make it very
difficult."<BR><BR>Many faculty are also concerned that the proposed
compensation sends the wrong message, said Lillian Taiz, the California Faculty
Assn. president.<BR><BR>"It is complete arrogance and tone deafness to be doing
something like this while students are being knocked sideways by pretty
staggering fee increases year after year," said Taiz, a history professor at Cal
State L.A. "For those of us who have been struggling and working on helping the
public understand the value of higher education and investment in higher
education … it doesn't send the right message."<BR><BR>The salary proposal shows
that Reed and the 25-member board are out of touch with the needs of students,
said Funmilola Fagbamila, who attends Cal Sate L.A. Her financial aid is
threatened by budget cuts and barely covers tuition, let alone books and
housing, she said.<BR><BR>"I think the salary they're talking about is
ridiculous," said Fagbamila, 20, who plans to attend a protest at the trustees'
meeting. "I definitely think administrators have not shouldered their share of
the cuts."<BR><BR>Hirshman, who assumed the top post at San Diego State on July
1, was previously provost and senior vice president of the <A id=OREDU0000506
class=taxInlineTagLink title="University of Maryland Baltimore County"
href="http://www.latimes.com/topic/education/colleges-universities/university-of-maryland-baltimore-county-OREDU0000506.topic">University
of Maryland, Baltimore County</A>, the No. 2 position. His salary there was
$267,000, according to the university.<BR><BR>Cal State trustees lauded his
academic record and administrative experience. "Those factors along with his
exciting vision for the future of San Diego State make him an excellent choice
to steward the university into the next decade, " said William Hauck, who
chaired the board's presidential search committee, after Hirshman's May
appointment.<BR><BR>Hirshman declined to comment.<BR><BR>The compensation
package includes a $1,000-per-month vehicle allowance and reimbursement for
moving costs as well as for expenses incurred in selling Hirshman's Virginia
residence. In San Diego, he will occupy a house provided by the
university.<BR><BR>San Diego State, with a student population of about 35,000,
is a leading research institution among Cal State's 23 campuses and has a noted
athletics program, officials said.<BR><BR>A study commissioned by the chancellor
found that Cal State's campus presidents are underpaid compared to their peers,
receiving on average only about 52% of the pay of chief executives at similar
institutions. Current presidents have not received a raise since 2007. If they
had, their salaries would be more in line with Hirshman's proposed pay, said Cal
State spokesman Mike Uhlenkamp.<BR><BR>Also earning more than $300,000 are San
Jose State President Mohammad Qayoumi at $353,200, Cal State L.A. President
James Rosser at $325,000 and Cal State Long Beach President F. King Alexander at
$320,329. Several Cal State presidents also receive $50,000 or $60,000 housing
allowances.<BR><BR>The median total compensation for public college presidents
in 2009-10 was $375,442, according to the Chronicle of Higher
Education.<BR><BR>A competitive salary and benefits are necessary to attract the
best and the brightest, Uhlenkamp said.<BR><BR>"The chancellor and trustees on
the search committee have come to the consensus that he is going to be someone
who is a leader for that university and for that community," Uhlenkamp said.
"We're not going to get people at bargain basement salaries to move across the
country to fill those roles."<BR><BR>Trustees also faced scrutiny in January
when they agreed to pay the new president of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, Jeffrey
Armstrong, $350,000 in state-funded salary, plus a $30,000 annual supplement
from the campus foundation. Until that point, according to a lawsuit filed by
the faculty association, the salary schedule for the system's campus presidents
had ranged from $223,584 to $328,200.<BR><BR>The suit, filed in April, alleges
that the chancellor and trustees violated California's open-meeting laws by
failing to provide public notice of the increase in the maximum salary
range.<BR><BR>Uhlenkamp, however, said trustees effectively set the higher pay
standard when they approved Armstrong's salary, which he said was properly
posted 10 days before the vote.<BR><BR>But the arguments ring hollow, said state
Sen. <A id=PEPLT00008176 class=taxInlineTagLink title="Leland Yee"
href="http://www.latimes.com/topic/politics/government/leland-yee-PEPLT00008176.topic">Leland
Yee</A> (D-San Francisco), a frequent critic of the compensation of top
officials at Cal State and the <A id=OREDU0000192 class=taxInlineTagLink
title="University of California"
href="http://www.latimes.com/topic/education/colleges-universities/university-of-california-OREDU0000192.topic">University
of California</A>. He also questioned the use of foundation money to supplement
salaries, arguing that these funds, typically provided by donors, should be used
to help students with financial difficulties to stay in school.<BR><BR>"In these
tough economic times," said Yee, "top administrators should be willing to
tighten their belts like everyone else."<BR><BR><I><A
href="mailto:carla.rivera@latimes.com">carla.rivera@latimes.com</A></I>
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